PHOENIX, ARIZONA – SEPTEMBER 25: Archie Bradley #25 of the Arizona Diamondbacks celebrates after closing the MLB game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Chase Field on September 25, 2019 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images)
The Reds stuck with a plan and it worked to perfection.
The Cincinnati Reds hitting the trade deadline with a .441 winning percentage may make them sellers in a normal season. However, that gives the team a 15-19 record in 2020 and the Reds enter play Monday just 1.5 games out of second place in a wide open National League Central division.
The Reds could have easily traded Trevor Bauer, who is on an expiring contract. He has made it clear in the past he only wants to sign one-year deals and is a bit of a wild card. Instead, the team stayed whole and actually became buyers at the deadline. One move landed a solid reliever in Archie Bradley and the other brought in veteran outfielder Brian Goodwin.
Reds don’t blow it up at the trade deadline
The Reds have a legitimate one-two punch with Bauer and Sonny Gray in the starting rotation. Blowing that up after a 15-19 start would have essentially shown they were waving the white flag on the 2020 season.
Bradley shows up as a legitimate option as a late-inning reliever. He has been with the Arizona Diamondbacks since 2015 and has six saves in 10 total appearances this season. A bonus is the fact he still has one more year of arbitration in 2021 before hitting free agency.
Goodwin is a bit of a late bloomer who played his first full season in 2019 with the Los Angeles Angels. He was a 2.2 WAR player last season and is slashing .242/.330/.463 so far in 2020. He is also under team control through 2022.
Adding two MLB players to help shakeup a roster is never a bad thing. No everyday starters were sent away and neither trade cost a top prospect either. The clubhouse also knows the goal is to compete for a spot in the postseason and not just give up with a month to go.
Now the club just has to play up to their potential after a rough start. Having Gray and Bauer still atop the rotation should strike fear into opposing teams in any potential playoff series.